2016 Peach Bowl Preview

The first of the National Semi-Finals, the Peach Bowl pits an undefeated Alabama team against a one loss Washington team.

Washington Huskies’ Offense

Jake Browning (Photo courtesy: ncaa.com)

The Huskies won every game on their schedule, besides a match-up against USC, who was very hot at the time. They beat five bowl eligible teams, which included very good wins over Colorado, Washington State and Utah. Washington is coming into this game on a three game win streak.

Jake Browning should have gotten more national attention this year. He threw for 3,280 yards, 42 touchdowns and seven interceptions. He is very efficient with the ball and hits his receivers with great accuracy. His arm isn’t the strongest, so he won’t be able to challenge Alabama’s secondary downfield.

Wide receiver John Ross is one of the fastest players in college football and has gashed defenses for 1,122 receiving yards and 17 touchdowns. Alabama will need to have safety help on Ross’ side of the field. Dante Pettis has also had a successful season with 796 receiving yards and 14 touchdowns.

Myles Gaskin is another player who has been overlooked by the national media. He has rushed for 1,339 yards and 10 touchdowns. When he needs a breather, Lavon Coleman heads in. He is averaging 7.8 yards per carry and seven touchdowns as a nice change of pace for the Huskies.

Washington Huskies’ Defense

Sidney Jones (Photo courtesy: withthefirstpick.com)

Washington has a great run defense, allowing 124 yards per game. The pass defense is equally good, giving up 193 yards per contest.

The strength of the Husky defense is the secondary. They have multiple draft prospects including Sidney Jones and Budda Baker. For Washington to win they need to provide run support and force turnovers.

Alabama Crimson Tide Offense

Jalen Hurts (Photo courtesy: usatoday.com)

The Crimson Tide beat everyone on their schedule to get to the College Football Playoff. One of the most impressive things about this team is that they beat 10 bowl teams this season. They have a win over USC, the team that beat Washington. Alabama is the most battle-tested team in the country.

Jalen Hurts was able to win the starting quarterback job as a true freshman. He has had a superb year with 2,592 passing yards, 22 touchdowns and nine interceptions. Hurts does damage with his arm, but is sucks the life out of a defense with his legs. He has 841 yards rushing and 12 rushing touchdowns. He has to be contained by Washington.

ArDarius Stewart, Calvin Ridley and O.J. Howard are all good targets for Hurts. All of these players will need to have a big game against a great Washington secondary. Stewart leads the team in yardage (852), touchdowns (eight) and yards per catch (16.4). Ridley is a play-maker with 727 receiving yards and seven touchdowns. Howard doesn’t have a lot of production and is under-utilized, but he had a great National Championship Game last season.

Running back Damien Harris is the leading rusher for Alabama. He has 986 rushing yards on a whopping 7.5 yards per carry. Harris and Hurts pick up a lot of the yardage, but Bo Scarborough pounds the ball into the end zone when the Crimson Tide gets close. He has seven rushing touchdowns on the season.

Alabama Crimson Tide Defense

Jonathan Allen (Photo courtesy: pigskinproject.com)

Alabama has the best run defense in the country and has given up 824 yards in 13 games. That alone makes them a great defense, but the pass defense is also elite with 186 yards allowed. If defenses win championships, Alabama has to be the overwhelming favorite.

Jonathan Allen and Tim Williams both have 8.5 sacks on the season and create havoc for opposing quarterbacks. Reuben Foster is one of the best linebackers in the country behind them and is a great run stopper with 94 total tackles and 12 tackles for loss. The secondary will be without Eddie Jackson, so the rest of the players will have to be fundamentally sound.

Prediction

Alabama’s defense is going to swarm to the football and play good defense. Harris and Hurts will run the football well. Washington will keep things close and will use a lot of trick plays, but will fall just short.

Alabama Crimson Tide 37 Washington Huskies 29

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